The Other Side of Joy

By April Joy Bowden

"The Other Side of Joy" is a collection of poems that deal with the emotions and passionate moments we experience in relationships; joy, pain, intimacy and ecstasy. You will find rules for dealing with each emotion. Each poem will allow you to laugh, cry, feel or wonder just how one can live with or without joy in their life. Do you remember your first kiss? Your first love? A special place that always makes you feel good? Can you recall having your heart broken? Or how you felt when you had to tell someone goodbye? Take this journey to reminisce on past or current relationships through poetry.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: May 17, 2012
• ISBN: 9781477204269

April Joy Bowden

April is the co-author of "HIGH - On Love & Addiction", which was a nominee and finalist for the 2011 AAMBC Literary Awards in the Reader's Choice category. She is a member of Sigma Theta Lambda Literary Sorority, Inc. and facilitator or The WRITE Stuff writing workshops. A lover of all things creative, she makes crafts, paints and attends various literary events. April has been a full time photographer for over fifteen years. She resides in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Book preview

THE OTHER SIDE

OF JOY

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APRIL JOY BOWDEN

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AuthorHouse™

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.authorhouse.com

Phone: [phone]

© 2012 by April Joy Bowden. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 05/08/2012

ISBN: 978-1-4772-0425-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4772-0426-9 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2012908277

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Introduction

My First Love

Love is . . .

Joy

At the Top

Through the Trees

Joy

Pieces

Fourty

Fruitful

Today

How Do I Love Thee?

Love Again

Who’s That Girl?

Exclusivity

The Park

Funny Valentine

You are My Music

Finding JOY at the End of a Rainbow

Anticipation

The Vow

The First Winter Snow

Pain

Moist

I’m Sorry

Your Rhythm

The Ride

My Destiny

Toxic

Dreams

Radio

So High

Not What it Used to be

Shattered

Intimacy

First Time

Forensics

Metro

Greetings

Slow Wine

How Do I Know?

Class is in Session

Your Scent

Point & Shoot

Ecstasy

Foreplay

Joy & Pain

Is She Sleeping?

Jazz

Mental Stimulation

The Edge of the B-E-D

The Edge of the B-E-D: Part 2

Thank Yous

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This book is dedicated to my big sister, Alison Bowden. To this day, I can still recite the very first poem I committed to memory that she sent in one of our many letters that kept us bonded together across the miles. Just the thought of that purple cow would always bring a smile to my face. It still does today. Thank you for introducing me to something that would become so special to me.

This book is dedicated in loving memory to the first man to give me love and accept mine in return. You gave to me unconditionally a gift that only one man can claim. You gave me the love of a father. Leonard A. Wilson, I am forever grateful.

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This book is dedicated in honor to a woman I’ve never met, yet feel so connected. Maya Angelou, thank you for sharing yourself with me.

I Know Why MY Caged Bird Sings

She sings because so many of my foremothers whose names I’ll never know and faces I’ve never seen born into slavery had not so many opportunities to lift their voices and sing.

She sings because my grandmothers who worked the fields picking cotton and preparing meals for their families sang, even if the songs they sang weren’t always so sweet. For years they sang in alto and soprano alone as their tenor and bass had preceded them in death by over twenty years. Alone, but never lonely, they sang.

She sings because Dorothy Mae who left me not many years after I was able to sing her name gave me the most precious gift . . . my life. MY caged bird sings because my mother does not walk the Earth alongside me.